


Remember?

by AThousandWishes



Category: Batman (Comics), Nightwing (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:14:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23674444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AThousandWishes/pseuds/AThousandWishes
Summary: Very old fic set in comics right after the Earth Quake and No Man's Land...Tim and Dick have questions, but Bruce does not want to share the answers.  So it’s Alfred to the rescue!
Kudos: 17





	Remember?

Remember? 

Rated: G 

For a long time, Tim stood in front of the glass case, which proudly displayed the old Robin costume. Slowly, he traced the words that adorned the plaque. 

Jason Todd 

A Good Soldier 

Tim thought silently, “What was he like? What were his habits, personality, hobbies, friends, favorite TV show? What kind of attitude did he have about school, girls, Bruce, Alfred, Barbara, and Dick? Was he happy at Wayne Manor? Just exactly who was Jason Todd, the person?” 

“Hey there, Squirt! Whatcha thinkin’?” Tim jumped at the voice behind him. 

“Oh…hi Dick. Nothing really…” Tim dared a look over at the large crays where Bruce was sitting. He could ask Dick about Jason another time, when Bruce was not around. The last thing Tim wanted to do was bring up painful memories of the past. 

Dick followed Tim’s gaze to their mentor. He too was tempted to leave well enough alone; however, Dick also knew that the subject of Jason Todd was never going to get any easier, as it was lying stagnant in the cold cave. 

“Nope! Not going to let you get away with it that easy, Tim!” Dick said lightly. “So what’s up?” 

“What was he like?” Tim asked. “I mean, I know the story about how he died…but how did he live? What was Jason Todd like as a person?” 

“Hmm…to be honest, I hardly knew him myself. I wish I could tell you otherwise, but I never really took the time to get to know Jason…Maybe Bruce could enlighten us,” Dick finished with a hopeful look on his face. 

Bruce did not look up from his work, as he muttered, “I’m busy.” 

A deep silence ruled in the cave for several minutes. Then Alfred appeared and spoke in a soft, firm voice, “I seem to recall an amusing adventure of Master Jason’s early days at Wayne Manor. If you remember Master Bruce, Jason had only been residing here for 3 weeks and was about to celebrate his 13th birthday. You asked the young master how he would like to spend the special day. Master Jason decided he wanted to go bowling.” Alfred stopped to scowl slightly at the thought. But the scowl soon turned to a smile, as the older gentleman continued his reminiscence. “Master Bruce wanted to take one of the less conspicuous vehicles, but Master Jason insisted on taking the limousine. He loved to ride in it everywhere he went.” 

Tim and Dick exchanged big smiles as Alfred continued his story, for neither one of them had heard Alfred or Bruce remember their “brother” in such a way. 

“On the way to the bowling alley, Master Jason decided he wanted to eat at McDonald’s. Not only that, the lad was in such a hurry to go bowling, he demanded we go through the drive through. Can you imagine how ridiculous a limousine looks sitting at the drive through window of a fast food restaurant?” Alfred began to chuckle and shake his head at the thought. “When we finally arrived at our destination, Master Jason made a bet with Master Bruce. The boy told Bruce he would bet him 200 push-ups on winning the first game.” 

“Who won?” Tim asked excitedly. 

“He did.” 

Everyone’s face showed shock at the voice that had answered Tim’s question. Bruce looked up with a sad half grin. As Bruce took over the story, no one noticed Alfred slipping off upstairs. “Jason beat me fair and square. Before the night was up, I owed him over 1000 push-ups. He only had to do 400.” 

“How many games did you play?” Dick inquired. 

“We played 3 games that night…When we started to leave, Jason didn’t want to return his shoes. He said they were good luck charms. So I bought them for him. Jason would walk around the manor in those awful looking things, all the time. In fact, I had to convince him to take them off the first time he wore the Robin outfit. Told him it was a bad fashion statement to wear bowling shoes with Kevlar,” Bruce said, with a laugh. “Not to mention, criminals would never take a vigilante who wore something that ridiculous seriously.” 

“Says he who dresses like a giant bat!” Dick exclaimed. Then he yelped, “Hey!” as Bruce chunked a rolled up newspaper at him. 

“Do you still have them?” Tim asked. 

“Not since the quake…” Bruce started, with a far away look in his eyes. 

“I beg your pardon, Sir.” Alfred reappeared holding a pair of green and red bowling shoes that proudly displayed the number 8 on the heel. “Are these the items in question?” 

“Alfred, where did you get these?” Bruce reached out to reverently take the tacky looking footwear. 

“I seem to remember salvaging these from a pile of debris before the complete demolition of the Manor. I’ve kept them in a safe place, knowing that one day you would desire to see them again.” 

Bruce did not say anything. He quietly sat in his chair before the large computer screens and gently ran his fingers over the cherished treasure. Alfred silently signaled Dick and Tim to follow him up the stairs. Both young men took a final, awed glance at their mentor, as they turned to walk behind the gentleman’s gentleman. 

When the trio had reached the kitchen and Alfred had served milk and cookies, Dick finally voiced a question. “Alfred, what did we just see down there?” 

“My boy, you just witnessed Master Bruce healing…and truly remembering how much he loved that boy. But I will even go a step further in saying, Master Bruce is also remembering how much he loves the two boys he has left, as well.” 

The End 


End file.
